


It's The Thought That Counts

by Cwartsy



Category: Hazbin Hotel (Web Series)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-19 22:25:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17010348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cwartsy/pseuds/Cwartsy
Summary: While it would be no picnic to deal with and there was a chance it could worsen, it shouldn’t be bad enough to affect his day to day life too much. He should be able to do normal things today, like go to work. Just like any other. That is of course, if it wasn’t for one giant obstacle. His partner, Alastor.Baxter has a chest infection but it's not that bad. Even with it, he should still be able to work. He should but try telling Alastor that.





	It's The Thought That Counts

**Author's Note:**

> A while back, I came up with the idea that Molly trained as a nurse during WWII before she died. So that's why Molly works as a nurse for the hotel in this fic and is Baxter's colleauge

Baxter hadn’t gotten much sleep. His coughing combined with his high temperature had kept him up for most of the night. And now that it was getting closer to the time he should be up, he abandoned the idea of sleep altogether.   
It was obvious he had come down with an illness of some kind. His machine of a mind automatically listed every symptom and matched them with an illness. The coughing, coughing up mucus, wheezing, high temperature, chest pain and aching muscles all pointed to a chest infection. Most Likely, acute bronchitis.

He was not happy with his conclusion. He was confident that he was right, he just wasn’t happy with the diagnosis itself. Chest infections are nasty blighters, Baxter had gotten them enough times to know, and he knew having one meant he was going to be like this for at least a week.  
But while it would be no picnic to deal with and there was a chance it could worsen, it shouldn’t be bad enough to affect his day to day life too much. He should be able to do normal things today, like go to work. Just like any other. That is of course, if it wasn’t for one giant obstacle. His partner, Alastor.  
If Baxter so much as coughed in Alastor’s presence, whether it turned out to be common flu or pneumonia, Alastor would confine him to his room for days. All the while, Baxter would be lucky if Alastor let him get out of bed to get a glass of water.   
That was why Baxter had pretended to be asleep every time Alastor had come to check on him during the night. If Baxter was going to get to do his job today, his overbearing partner had to have absolutely no idea he was ill.  
There was no way Baxter could keep Alastor in the dark for the entire duration of his illness. But he knew that having time off work would be a major inconvenience to Molly. The only other person in the building who had the qualifications, experience and overall public trust needed to provide medical care to this insane asylum of a hotel. Not to mention the patients he was supposed to be treating. Baxter wanted to spare them all that for as long as possible. Even if realistically that meant until Alastor saw him next. And even if there was the possibility that during the day his illness would take a turn for the worse and he wouldn’t be able to do his job, Baxter felt obliged to at least try.  
So it was decided. Baxter was going to leave for work early before Alastor got here and noticed Baxter was ill.  
He had plenty of time. It was only five in the morning now. He had an hour before Alastor’s shift ended and he arrived at Baxter’s door. So Baxter went through his usual morning routine. Although be it two hours early. Although just in case, he made sure he was ready with a good half hour to spare. He would have to find a believable explanation for why he left for work so early or Alastor would be onto him. That was easy. He quickly started writing a note for Alastor to read when he arrived.  
“Had to leave early. Emergency at work. Sorry you couldn’t see me before I left. DON’T come to see me at work. You need your rest. I’ll see you when I get back.”  
There. That was perfectly believable. He was called in on emergency all the time. Baxter would just tell Alastor some idiot had overdosed or something.  
But still, something wasn’t quite right about this note. It seemed a little, distant. Something was missing. What could it be?  
Of course. It was clear to him now. He jotted down to the essential words:  
“Love you.”  
Much better. Baxter placed his note on his bedside table and got the last of his things together. Going through a mental list of everything he needed.   
He shouldn’t have any trouble getting to his place of work. Part of Alastor’s job was to provide extra security for the hotel. Mainly to keep the residents from robbing, assaulting or killing each other while the majority of the hotel’s inhabitants slept. The floor he was assigned to patrol changed with each shift and although Baxter couldn’t be sure which floor Alastor was on now, he was fairly sure it wasn’t the same floor he was on. If he was, Alastor would have checked in on Baxter every fifteen minutes as he passed his door. Instead of every few hours during his breaks. All Baxter would have to do is take the lift straight to his office floor and any chances of them bumping into each other would be eliminated.  
After one last check that he wasn’t forgetting anything, he was off. As he reached the door, it dawned on him how ridiculous this situation was. He had just planned an escape route just to get to his job. He started laughing quietly to himself. But unfortunately, that laughter turned to coughing and soon he was coughing up a lung.  
Hacking and spluttering, he opened the door. And saw Alastor standing on the other side.  
Baxter nearly jumped out of his skin. No matter how much time passed by. No matter how well he got to know his partner, he would never get used to Alastor appearing from out of nowhere. What was he even doing here? He should still be working for the next half hour. Baxter remembered something. Something that made him curse himself for forgetting.  
Even with all of his planning, Baxter had failed to take one thing into account. Alastor’s random tenancy to get someone to cover for him for a few minutes while he checked on Baxter. Just to make sure he was still breathing or something just as nonsensical.  
And now he was standing right in front of Baxter and glaring at him very suspiciously.  
“Alastor.” Baxter greeted as if the last few moments had never happened, “I’d ask you what you’re doing here at this hour but I can’t stop. I;”  
He tried to get past his partner but ended up walking straight into Alastor’s outstretched arm. He hooked it around Baxter’s waist and kept him firmly in place, making sure he wasn’t going anywhere. He placed a hand across Baxter’s forehead and scowled.  
Baxter was back in bed within seconds. Alastor had ordered him to bed as if he was a misbehaving child. And when he refused, Alastor threatened he’d make him go to bed. Oh the joys of having a partner with hypnotic powers.  
“Alright” Baxter said in defiance, “I’ll appease you for the next hour or so but then I’m going to work"  
“You are ill. You are going nowhere.” Alastor said sternly.  
“Alastor, I’m certain all I have is a chest infection. It’s not contagious and it’s not physically straining enough to deem me bedridden. Why do we have to have this argument every time I come down with an illness? Even if it’s as minor as this?”  
“Because you always insist on overworking yourself and making yourself worse!” Alastor said indignantly.  
“Alastor.” Baxter started but Alastor just gagged him with his hand. He was hearing no more of what he clearly thought was nonsense.  
With his free hand he got out his phone and started dialling. Baxter knew protesting would be pointless but he tried anyway. Alastor of course, completely ignored him. One phone call, an apology and an explanation later, Alastor had gotten whoever he had suckered into covering for him to continue covering for him for the rest of his shift. Then he was on the phone to someone else and Baxter knew exactly who.  
“Alastor, you don’t have to phone Molly now.” Baxter again protested and again, Alastor ignored him. Even from where he was, Baxter could hear Molly’s;   
“You’d better have a damn good reason for waking me up this early!”  
“Oh, I do" Alastor responded. His posture straitened and his tone was firm, like someone making a demand and determined not to back down or take no for an answer. Because in retrospect, that was exactly what Alastor was in this moment in time. “I’m calling to tell you that Baxter is not coming into work today because he is ill.”  
There was silence for a few seconds as Alastor listened to Molly on the other end. Then he frowned and reluctantly handed Baxter his phone.  
“She want’s to talk to you.” he said.  
Baxter was relieved at that. Finally, he could bring some sense into the situation.  
“Molly, go back to sleep.“ He told her apologetically, “It’s nothing to worry about. Alastor’s just being daft. I’ve just got a chest infection. That’s all. I’ll be in work usual time.”  
“No, you won’t!” Alastor butted in before Baxter could even apologise to Molly properly for the inconvenience they caused.  
“Yes I will.” Baxter answered back and then apologised to Molly. Mainly on Alastor’s behalf.  
“You sure it’s a chest infection?“ Molly asked.  
“Yes. I’m quite sure it’s acute bronchitis.  
“What?” Alastor, bless him, suddenly became very concerned.  
“It’s one of the nicer types of chest infections. Don’t worry.” Baxter clarified to his partner.  
This made him calm down a little but he still started pacing around the room.  
“What symptoms have you ben experiencing?” Molly asked Baxter and he listed them all there and then.  
“Sounds like a chest infection to me.” she agreed, “But what about tiredness? Have you been experiencing that too?”  
“Yes.” Baxter replied honestly, “But I’m not sure if that’s a symptom or if it’s due to;”  
Baxter stopped himself right there before he said too much. But it was already too late.  
“Due to what?” Both Molly and Alastor asked Baxter this at the same time. Molly was polite and casual when she asked. But Alastor was so demanding and suspecting, Baxter could almost hear him also ask, “What else are you trying to hide from me?”  
In hopes that only Molly would be able to hear him, Baxter said as quietly as possible, “Lack of sleep.”  
He wasn’t quiet enough. The sharp sound of a slap went through the air as Alastor brought both hands to his face and Baxter tried his best to ignore his ranting about how he couldn’t believe Baxter. How he couldn’t believe someone so intelligent could be so senseless. How he couldn’t believe Baxter could be so careless about his own health that he would try to go and work a twelve hour shift, two hours early, while ill and having gotten next to no sleep. How he dreaded to think where he’d be without him and that was it. Baxter may as well end his conversation with Molly now because no matter what she said, he refused to let Baxter walk out that door. As if he had ever been willing to let Baxter leave in the first place.  
It would have helped if Molly had said something to distract him. But she stayed completely silent as Alastor went on and on. Turns out she was listening.  
“He kinda has a point.” Molly told him gently.  
“Excuse me?” Baxter asked baffled. Not even he could find any sense in Alastor’s ramblings.  
“Well, one of the symptoms for a chest infection is disorientation. You might not be feeling it now but it might affect you later on. And disorientation mixed with tiredness isn’t going to go down well in any work setting. Least of all one like ours”.  
Baxter saw what she meant and of course, she was absolutely right.  
“But what about you though.’ he protested, “I don’t want you to have to manage all by yourself.”  
“I’ll be fine. And let’s be realistic here, Bax. It would be way easier for me to cover for you today than it would be to try and prise you out of Alastor’s grip. I’d probably have a better time trying to steal a fish from a grizzly bear.” Baxter had to hold in a laugh when she said that.  
“Stay in and rest today, Baxy and we’ll see how you are tomorrow. I’ll come over to check on you when I can.”  
“Thank you, Molly but that won’t be necessary.” Baxter said, “I can look after myself.”  
Molly let out something that sounded crossed between a laugh and a sigh.  
“Typical Bax.” she said, “It’s mostly to keep Alastor happy. You know how he is. He’ll want me to come over every five minutes just to make sure you’re not dying or something. And talk of the devil, pass me back to him. I’ve got to go over some things with him. I’ll see you soon.  
“Alright. Goodbye Molly.”  
“Bye.”  
The phone was passed back to Alastor and after a few minutes of conversation he said goodbye and hung up.  
“Thank goodness for that!” he exclaimed “At least one of you has sense.”  
“One of them, you mean.” Baxter tried an attempt at humour to lighten Alastor’s mood.  
“At least Angel knows when to take a day off.” Alastor grumbled as he sat down on the edge of Baxter’s bed. Only then did he finally notice the note Baxter left for him before all this palaver started.  
“What’s this?” he asked.  
“A note that was supposed to explain my absence.” Baxter answered.  
“And I’m assuming it’s all lies.” Alastor said with a bitter tone as he started reading.  
“Except for the last bit.” Baxter admitted.  
Alastor’s eyes darted to the last sentence on the page and visibly softened when he read those two words.  
“You know just how to get to all my soft spots, don’t you?” Alastor said as if he thought Baxter knew the effect his note would have on him. As if it had been planned all along.  
Baxter kissed Alastor on the cheek in response. After all, it was always fun to keep his partner on his toes. The older demon blushed and let out a heavy sigh.  
“You’re lucky you’re too cute to stay mad at." he said pinching Baxter’s cheek, “Molly says that for a chest infection, you need;”  
“To drink plenty of water, take painkillers if needed and to get plenty of rest.” Baxter finished for him, “I know.”  
“So, why didn’t you get some rest instead of trying this nonsense?” Alastor asked, waving the note in front of Baxter’s face.  
“I would have gotten some rest after work.” Baxter said.  
Alastor sighed dramatically and rolled his eyes at him. “I’m going to go and get you everything you need.”  
“I’ve got all those things here.” Baxter said, “I’ll get them now.”  
“No. You stay.” Alastor said quickly, pushing Baxter back onto the mattress when he tried to move. “I’ll get them.”  
This time, it was Baxter’s turn to sigh and roll his eyes. “There’s some bottled water in the fridge and some ibuprofen and paracetamol on my desk.”  
Alastor found all the items and brought them over to his bedside table.  
“I can still think of a few things you could do with,” he said.  
"Like what?” Baxter asked.  
“You’ll see.” he told his lover, tucking him in. “I’m going to go and get them now. You stay here and rest.”  
He gave Baxter the kiss goodbye he would have wanted from him, had this been a normal day, and headed out. But before he went, he made sure that Baxter’s phone was within his reach and as he got to the door, he snapped his fingers.  
“What did you do?” Baxter demanded wearily. Instantly suspicious.  
“You’ll find out soon enough.” was Alastor’s answer.  
Baxter’s immediate thoughts were with finding out what Alastor had done to what object or objects in his room, before they came to torment him. But when he tried to get out of bed, he found that he couldn’t. At most he could move enough to reach the things on his bedside table but any more than that and sheets stuck to him tight like clingfilm. Trapping him where he was. And then it hit him.  
“Oh come on!” he shouted to his partner, “Is this really necessary?”  
“Well, you tried to get out of bed so yes!“  
“You’re ridiculous!” Baxter called after him.  
“Love you too. And call me if you need me.” Alastor called back and then he was gone

Baxter still thought Alastor was being absurd but he did try to get some sleep for his partner. He found it just as difficult as he had before. Despite being very tired. Every time he got close to achieving some form of rest, a terribly timed coughing fit woke him up again. Still he kept trying. That is until he started coughing up blood.  
Oh dear. This was a sign that his illness might be a bit worse than he thought. He notified Molly immediately in the form of a text message but wasn’t sure when she would receive it. The time on his phone read half past six. Alastor had been gone for nearly an hour, where could he be? Molly was likely to be asleep for the next half hour. He could phone her but Baxter didn’t think it was that urgent. He’d live to see seven AM. And despite really wanting to, he wasn’t going to phone Alastor either. Knowing that his partner was coughing up blood would only frighten him.   
Baxter was feeling frightened himself. As irrational and foolish as that was. He knew what was wrong with him. He knew it wasn’t serious. Well, he knew it wasn’t that serious. He knew he’d recover. This was just one of the symptoms for the illness he had. He had known coughing up blood was a possibility, he had been half expecting it to happen. So why was he feeling so scared? Baxter didn’t know but after coughing up blood, he had to settle for pretending he had gotten some sleep when his partner finally came back.  
Alastor couldn’t have been gone for more than another half hour. But to Baxter, it felt like an it eternity. He had spent the whole time prepared for Alastor’s return, which he had expected to be at any moment. Lying in wait with his back turned to the door to hide the fact that he wasn’t asleep. Knowing his partner, Alastor would probably just appear in the room without so much as a sound. Baxter was right of course. He didn’t even know Alastor was back until he wondered why the air suddenly carried a scent of sausages and bacon. He kept his relief hidden from Alastor as well as he had hidden the blood stained tissues he had accumulated since Alastor’s absence. This was made easy when Baxter saw Alastor.   
Alastor was not a man who half did things. Everything he did was over the top and eccentric and if anything was proof of that now, it was the tray full of food he was carrying and the additional shopping bags hanging from his arms.  
“I thought I’d get us some breakfast.” He announced.  
“I should think that’s for both of us.” Baxter said with a smile that, thanks to Alastor’s lovable eccentricity, was actually genuine, “I don’t even think I could eat a quarter of all that.“  
“Well sorry.” Alastor teased, “But I think you need more than two slices of toast to start the day.”  
So that’s why you keep showing up with food at my workplace every time I choose that for breakfast.” Baxter said, “The question is, how do you know?”   
Alastor flashed Baxter an utterly shameless smile and said, “Sources.”  
Baxter groaned at Alastor and his stalkerish behaviour which was really, too well meaning for him to be even slightly annoyed at.  
“Just let me out of this blanket trap, will you?” he sighed, “I need to use the bathroom.”   
With a snap of Alastor’s fingers, Baxter was free again. What he told Alastor was true enough. But the main reason he was heading to the bathroom was to dispose of the bloody tissues he had hidden up his sleeve. Undoubtedly, the only thing that kept Alastor from smelling the blood on them was the stronger smell of the cooked food. That wouldn’t last so down the toilet the tissues went. Baxter knew doing this would only delay the inevitable. But that was precisely Baxter’s goal. He didn’t want Alastor to know he was coughing up blood until Molly came with confirmed assurance that he was going to be alright.   
He went back to the main room to find that Alastor had set the tray down on the bed. Now Baxter could see what Alastor had prepared. He really had gone all out. Full English breakfasts with black pudding, baked beans and everything.  
“Alastor, you’ll never cease to surprise me.” was all he could think to say.   
“Never intend to.” Alastor said smugly, “Where would be the fun in that?”   
“How did you get black pudding?” Baxter asked him, “I didn’t think it was sold anywhere near here.”  
“I have my ways.” Alastor shrugged.  
“Alastor.” Baxter queried, “You didn’t go up to the surface for this, did you?”  
“No.” Alastor said. Sounding intentionally unconvincing.  
“Alastor.” Baxter objected, “We’re not supposed to go up to the surface unless you have an important reason.”  
“You don’t seem to be mad about it.” Alastor pointed out.  
“I’m not.” Baxter said  
“So you appreciate it really.” Alastor declared.  
“Of course I do.” Baxter said, giving Alastor a kiss to prove it, “I just don’t want you getting into trouble for me.”  
“I was careful.” Alastor assured, “I’ve been up there a thousand times without Charlie or the surface dwellers being any the wiser. And what’s the worst that could happen even if I was caught? Charlie would just give me a slap on the wrist and you know no mortal could lay a scratch on me.”  
“It could affect us all if any of us gets caught.” Baxter lectured, “Just promise me you won’t get cocky, alright?”  
“Promise.” Alastor vowed.  
“I can’t believe you made all of this for me.” Baxter said, turning the discussion back to how amazed he was at Alastor’s latest grand gesture.  
“I thought I’d make you something homely” Alastor said “and I thought I’d try something you might have enjoyed when you were alive”  
“What a sweet thought.” Baxter praised. Smiling as he thought of Alastor preparing all this, thinking that it might bring back good memories. Of taverns in early mornings or eating heartily for busy days or simply enjoying life. “But to be honest with you, Alastor. I didn’t really eat meals like this when I was alive.”  
“Really?” Baxter felt bad when he heard the slight disappointment in Alastor’s voice.  
“Only the wealthy could afford to eat these things on a regular basis in my time.” Baxter explained, “I’m not sure when a meal like this became readily available to everyone but it certainly wasn’t my time.”  
Baxter was saying this to be honest, not to put Alastor down. So to avoid doing that, he kept being honest.  
“Not that any of that matters,” he praised, “I love all the effort you put into this. Thank you,”  
And then he gave him another kiss.  
“This is really impressive, Alastor.” Baxter declared. Now the time for honesty was well and truly over. He made sure he came across as purely interested and not at all nervous when he asked, “Did you cook it all by yourself?”  
“God no. Nifty helped me cook it.” Alastor told him as if he could read his mind, “I wasn’t going to tackle this by myself. You’re ill enough as it is.”  
Baxter did his best to conceal the wave of relief that washed over him when Alastor said that. “You’re not that bad a cook.” he lied, knowing full well he was.  
Baxter was not one to focus primarily on his partner’s flaws. But even he had to acknowledge it was a miracle Alastor’s coking hadn’t killed anyone yet.  
He was still a little nervous to eat the breakfast Alastor had made but he didn’t care. Alastor had cooked this especially for him and Baxter was going to eat all of it. Even if it did kill him. But when he started eating, Baxter was pleasantly surprised. It turned out that with the right amount of help and motivation, Alastor could cook a meal that was actually edible. Enjoyable even.  
“This is great.” He complemented to a righteously proud looking Alastor, “Well done, you.”  
Baxter ate nearly everything on his plate with an appetite he hardly ever had. He even started eating the black pudding. Baxter had never found what was basically dried pigs blood appealing but there was no way in hell he was telling Alastor that.  
“You don’t seem to be enjoying that.” Alastor observed.  
“Oh, no. It’s fine.” Baxter insisted.  
Alastor gave Baxter a little peck on the cheek and naturally, Baxter gazed into his eyes. A classic Mistake.  
“Now be honest.” Alastor commanded.  
Damn it. Baxter fell for that every time. Under Alastor’s spell, he couldn’t stop himself from telling him that he never really liked black pudding but didn’t want to say, because Alastor had gone through so much trouble to get it for him.  
“You little sweetheart.” Alastor smiled, caressing Baxter’s cheek. “It’s Okay. You appreciate that I got it. That’s all I need.”  
“Still, I feel guilty about it going to waste.” Baxter admitted.  
“That might not be so.” Alastor said brightly, “I haven’t tried it yet”.  
He popped a piece of black pudding into his mouth and when he did, it was magic for Baxter to see. Alastor looked like he had discovered the holy grail. His eyes lit up and he started chewing very slowly. Savouring the flavour of every bite.  
“Where has this stuff been all my life?” he breathed as if his breath had been taken away.  
Seeing Alastor enjoying it so much cheered Baxter right up. “Now I know what to treat you with next time you fall ill.” he laughed, “Here, have mine.“  
He scraped his black pudding onto Alastor’s plate with his knife and it didn’t stay there very long. With the last of the breakfasts eaten, Alastor took the tray away. He searched around for a place to put it before deciding on Baxter’s desk. By placing it there, Baxter could guess that he planned to take it back to the kitchen later rather than sooner. He seemed to be focused on something else at the moment.  
"Speaking of treats.” he said, “Guess what else I got for you.”  
“I couldn’t possibly Imagine.” Baxter teased. He could help loving this. Being Alastor’s top priority.  
“I think you’ll find that I was a bit more accurate when choosing things you like this time.” Alastor said as he presented Baxter with one of the shopping bags.  
It turned out to be full of fruit and sweets and accuracy wasn’t even the word when it came to Alastor’s choices here.  
“You remembered all my favourites.” Baxter said completely sappy with sentimentality.  
The bag was bursting with strawberries, blackberries, cherries, pomegranates, grapes of every kind and sweets straight out of Baxter’s childhood. Pear drops, liquorice allsorts and every Cadbury’s chocolate bar in existence. Including ones Baxter had no idea existed.  
I haven’t had some of these since I was alive.” he said astounded. He was so wrapped up in the past he almost said “when I was a boy.” But who on earth stops eating chocolate when they reach adulthood. “You must have put so much thought into this.”  
“It was nothing really.” Alastor shrugged, “Choosing a bag of goodies for you was easy. I may not know every detail about you but I know you well enough.”  
Baxter chortled as soon as those last few words entered his mind. That had to be sarcastic.  
“You don’t know everything about me?” he responded with a raised eyebrow and a huge grin, “Alastor, my love. I know for a fact that’s a damn lie.”  
He grabbed his wonderful partner’s face and caresses it with both hands.  
Baxter couldn’t think of better to do to show his gratitude than to throw his arms around Alastor and pelt him with kisses.  
The affection was greatly received. Alastor put his arms around Baxter and Baxter put his arms around him. They stayed in that embrace for a golden moment.  
It was such a perfect moment. Of course it had to be ruined.  
Baxter started coughing again. He had been fighting to keep them at bay the whole time Alastor had been here. He knew he couldn’t keep it up forever but Baxter so wished he had been able to hold out a little bit longer.  
Alastor went to retrieve the water, medicine and tissues and was back at his side at once. Ready to provide any support and comfort he could. Baxter took one of the tissues and began coughing into it as he was overcome by an all out fit. All Baxter could do was keep coughing and hope Alastor didn’t notice.  
“Why can I smell blood?” Alastor gasped, his voice full of worry and dread.  
“The black pudding.” Baxter rasped in a vain attempt to throw Alastor off.  
“No. I can smell fresh blood.” Alastor fretted, “Coming from you.”  
“Baxter quickly bunched up the tissue he was holding in his hand. Keeping it from Alastor’s sight so that he might have a chance to dispose of it. But Alastor had already identified it as the source of the scent. He grabbed Baxter’s hand, prised it open and his fears were confirmed.  
He just looked in horror for a few seconds at the tissue dotted with red. Completely stunned silent.  
“Oh, Alastor.” Baxter whispered.  
Hearing Baxter’s voice seemed to break Alastor out of his trance. “We’re going to see Molly. Now.” He commanded, tugging Baxter onto his feet.  
“Alastor;” Baxter tried to comfort him, or at least reassure him but Alastor cut him off immediately.  
“Why didn’t you tell me?!” Alastor shouted at Baxter, clearly much more upset than angry.  
“I didn’t want to frighten you.” Baxter begged, “Please don’t fret so. I’m alright, I assure you. This is just one of the symptoms.”  
“I wouldn’t have left you alone if I had known this. I left you all alone.”  
“Alastor. Look at me.” Baxter caught hold of Alastor’s face and brought it to his own.  
“I am not in danger. The blood is just a symptom of a worse, but not harmful, type of chest infection than I thought I had. That’s all it is. That’s. All. It. Is.” he said to Alastor slowly and clearly so it would break through his panic.  
“Then why is it that you look scared too?” Alastor whispered.  
Baxter faltered at these words. He hadn’t realised his own fear was showing through. This wasn’t good. There was no way he could keep Alastor calm if he was showing fear as well. But to calm Alastor down, he realised he had to calm himself down first. Regardless of how real it seemed, his fear was completely irrational. And the sooner he got that into his head, the sooner he could get it into Alastor’s.  
“Irrational nonsense, that’s why.” Baxter assured, “I know what’s wrong with me and I know I’m going to get better. And look, I’ve already told Molly. See?”  
He showed Alastor the message he had sent to her on his phone. “She’s going to check me over, just in case.”  
“Then where is she?” Alastor asked.  
“That’s a good question.” Baxter admitted as he pondered for and answer, “Ah. Look. It’s still a few minutes shy of seven o'clock. She wakes up for work at the same time as me. She probably hasn’t seen my message yet.  
“What good is that?” Alastor exclaimed “How is she supposed to help you if she doesn’t know what’s going on?”  
He phoned Molly that instant and told Baxter she was on her way.  
While they waited for Molly, Baxter and Alastor sat huddled up together at the end of Baxter’s bed. Alastor had looked so unsure of himself since that phone call ended. He just sat by Baxter’s side and held him as if he didn’t know what else to do. It was worrying to see him like this and Baxter also found that he couldn’t do anything more than hug his partner and hold him until Molly came.  
Time seemed to pause in that moment and nothing existed to Baxter except for his poor, worried partner.  
A knock at the door snapped them both back into reality. Alastor went to answer it and in came molly. Still in her pyjamas and sporting quite an impressive bed head. The only thing indicating she was a medical professional was the stethoscope protruding slightly out of the open bag she must have hastily thrown it into.  
“You should have phoned me, dumbass.” Molly sighed to Baxter as he entered his room.  
Baxter gave her a weak smile as Alastor went straight back to his side and resumed his dutiful position as Baxter’s cuddle dispenser. Molly looked at them as if they were a pair of snuggling puppies, which was pretty embarrassing for Baxter. But nowhere near embarrassing enough to stop him from putting his arms around Alastor.  
But of course, he had to let go so Molly could check him over properly. Which he did with great reluctance.  
Molly took his temperature, checked his breathing and the state of his throat. All of which were standard of a medical check-up for his illness. But when she started checking his heartbeat and his pulse, he knew something was up. These things weren’t of any necessity and Molly was professional enough to know this. The only reason Baxter could think of for Molly’s sudden over thoroughness was that she was doing this for show to make Alastor feel better. Baxter could not have been more thankful for Molly’s good thinking.  
“How are you feeling?” she asked him.  
“Apart from the blood and tiredness, not too bad.” he answered in total honesty.  
“Did you get any sleep while I was gone?” Alastor cut in.  
“I tried to,” Baxter told him truthfully, “But I had the same problems I did before and then when I started coughing up blood, I couldn’t get back to sleep at all.”  
Baxter didn’t realise how thoughtless he had been saying that until he saw Alastor’s face. The poor thing looked pained with guilt.  
“I could have phoned you at any time.” Baxter reminded him, “I just chose not to. Silly, wasn’t it?”  
“Yes, it was.” Alastor said, “I don’t know what to do with you sometimes”.  
“He’s a terrible patient, isn’t he?” commented Molly.  
“The worst.” Alastor agreed.  
“Hey now.” Baxter defended, “I haven’t been that bad today, have I?  
“No.” Alastor agreed with narrowed eyes, “Not after I caught you sneaking off to work.”  
He shook his head and said to Molly, “ I swear, he’d drop dead without me. He treats himself like a machine.”  
Hearing these words only added to the pang of guilt that kept stabbing at Baxter from inside his chest. He was still used to his decisions affecting himself and only himself. It never felt any better when he was reminded that wasn’t the case anymore. Cuddling up to Alastor once more was his way of saying sorry for his lack of consideration.  
“Besides from coughing up blood, have you been experiencing any other new symptoms?” Molly asked.  
“No. None at all.” He answered.  
“How are you on pain?” She asked him another question. It went without saying that this one was of great interest to Alastor.  
“It’s come and gone but overall, it hasn’t been too bad.” Baxter said, “As of yet, I haven’t felt the need to take any medication.”  
Molly seemed satisfied with the information she had gathered. “Everything seems to be normal, chest infection wise.” She said in a conclusion that was much more aimed towards Alastor than it was Baxter as she reached for something in her bag.  
“I think we can both agree that you’re not in a bad enough condition to need these. But I’ll leave them with you just in case you get worse.” She said to Baxter, handing him a box of pills. Which turned out, as Baxter expected, to be amoxicillin 500mg.  
“That’s about all I can do for him.” She said to Alastor, “I’d say take care of him but I know you will.”  
“And as for you,” She turned to Baxter, “rest and let me know how you are tomorrow. I gotta get going”.  
Baxter thanked her for everything and almost said goodbye but questioned the point. Even though she had done all she could and there was no more reason for her to be here, she probably wasn’t going right now. Not if Alastor had anything to say about it. He looked at his partner. As he predicted, Alastor was appalled by the briefness of Molly’s visit.   
“But what about the blood?” He protested, “Can’t we do anything about that?”   
“That will clear up on its own, Alastor. Like everything else.” Baxter told him gently.   
“He’s right.” Molly confirmed, “He’ll get better by himself, Al. You’ll see. ”  
Alastor wasn’t entirely convinced, “You said that medicine you gave him is for if he gets worse but surely, there’s something we can give him now?”  
Then Alastor’s eyes lit up as if he just remembered something. He darted towards the other shopping bag he brought in. Of which, the contents were still unknown to Baxter. He fished some items out of it and promptly brought them to Baxter.  
“Here, darl.” he said, handing him a cough medicine and a spoon. He probably got the spoon from the kitchens but Baxter wouldn’t put it past his partner that he’d bought it while out for this specific purpose “Take some of this. That’ll help, right?”  
“You are good to me.” Baxter praised before breaking the reality to him, “But Medicine isn’t going to help me recover any faster. Especially not cough medicine. As good as it was of you to get it for me, the coughing I’m experiencing is actually helping me clear the infection. All I need are the painkillers and the Amoxicillin if I get worse.”  
“Oh.” Alastor said disheartened, “I got you some stuff for your throat too. Would that help?”  
“Oh yes. Definitely.” Baxter said immediately. Hoping the knowledge that Alastor had indeed got him something useful would make him feel better.  
It did but sadly, only slightly. He went back to where the bag was and retrieved everything else he had gotten to help Baxter with his illness. Apparently, Alastor hadn’t been sure which brand of throat sweets would work the best, so he bought the lot. That would explain why Baxter now had a dozen different brands of sweets to choose from. He had also gotten him tea with honey and lemons to go with it.  
“There was a lot of stuff labelled honey and lemon in packets but I figured the real stuff would work better.” Alastor explained.  
“How thoughtful.” Molly complimented.  
“He has been marvellous.” Baxter said, “You should see all the other things he got for me and what he made for me earlier.”  
He then told Molly all about everything Alastor had done for him thus far. Molly found it all to be impressive and adorably sweet so he encouraged her to talk about it like mad. He thought all the compliments and praise would do Alastor’s esteem wonders but when he turned to his beloved partner, he was sorry to see that he looked just as uncertain and anxious as he had when he called Molly to come over.  
“Alastor.” he soothed, taking his partner’s hand, “I can see you’re still worried about me but there really is no need to be. If there was anything seriously wrong with me, Molly would know right away. I would know right away. I know I’m ill but I’m not suffering. I’m not even in that much pain and I am going to be better very soon. I’m going to be just fine.”  
At last, Alastor was looking a little happier. He smiled for the first time since he found out Baxter was coughing up blood. But of course, Baxter had to go and mess it all up.  
“In fact. From the way I’m feeling right now, I’m certain I will be able to go back to work tomorrow.”  
Alastor looked at Baxter as if he was mad.  
“Yeah.” Molly agreed with a smile, “If you get enough rest today, I don’t see why you can’t come back in tomorrow.”  
But when Molly was unfortunate enough to get a glance at the look on Alastor’s face, she immediately rephrased herself. No hypnosis needed. His glare was more than enough to do the job.  
“Or,” She said nervously, “if Bax is still ill then maybe, three days?  
Alastor clung to Baxter and pulled him behind him as if he thought he was going to be snatched away at any moment. “Three days?” He cried out stupefied “He’s coughing up blood! He’s not going anywhere until that stops.”  
“That might not be for another week, Alastor.” Baxter told him gently, “I can’t afford to take that much time off work.”  
“You can’t help being ill, Baxter.” Alastor proclaimed, “Molly will just have to manage. You can manage, can’t you?”  
“Yeah, but only for so long.” Molly said, “It’s been getting really busy lately, even more than usual. I can’t remember the last time we’ve had a slow day.”  
“That’s because we’ve never had a slow day.” Baxter corrected, “At least not since the hotel took off anyway”.  
“Exactly.” Molly said, “And I’m definitely going to need you over the weekend.”  
“But of course.” Baxter said in empathy, “I wouldn’t dream of leaving you to face the nightlife nightmare alone.”  
“I think I’d rather risk life and limb trying to haul you away from Al.” she chuckled light-heartedly to herself before getting serious, “Seriously though, Al. It’s obvious seeing Baxter cough up blood scared you but he really his going to be fine. It’s likely that he’ll stop in a few days and then he’ll get better from there.”  
Alastor didn’t answer. He just kept clinging on to Baxter  
“I’ll tell you what.” Molly compromised, “I’ll let you take care of him for five days. In that time, you should start seeing improvements in his health. That’ll make you feel better, won’t it?”  
“But Molly,” Baxter objected, “That’s not fair on you."  
Molly didn’t say anything back. She just looked at him and then at Alastor. Making him follow her eyes up to meet his partner’s. He saw how relieved and grateful Alastor looked and he couldn’t protest any further. He just wrapped his arms around him and mouthed at Molly, “Thank you.”  
She gave him a warm smile in return and went on with her discussion with Alastor as if their interaction hadn’t happened. As if it was a secret between them.  
“But after those five days, Al, I’m going to have to start fighting for him.”  
“Good luck.” Alastor said to her jokingly.  
“Thanks. I’ll need it.” she joked back.  
It was good fun to see Alastor and Molly share a moment of silliness. But it crossed Baxter’s mind that there wasn’t much time left until Molly’s shift started. He wondered how much time there was to go. Apparently Molly wondered the same thing. Because in that exact same moment, she took a glance at Baxter’s alarm clock and jumped back when she read the time.  
“And it’s half seven and I am nowhere near ready.” She said, making a swift exit, “Now I’ve really got to go. I’ll see you two later. Any problems call me.”  
They all exchanged goodbyes and just like that, Molly was gone. When she shut the door behind her, the sound echoed through the room and then it suddenly became dead quiet. Now that it was just the two of them, the silence was overbearing to the point where Baxter started noticing sounds he never noticed. Like the water in the radiator or the breezy whirring of the electrics in his mini fridge. He felt like he should break the silence but he didn’t quite know how, and he guessed that Alastor had the same problem. Neither of them were sure of what to say to the other.  
With their communication struggling, they found themselves returning to as they were when they were waiting for Molly to arrive. Alastor held Baxter as tight as he could without cutting off his air supply and rested his chin on Baxter’s shoulder. Baxter was too short to reach the top of Alastor’s shoulder, so he settled on leaning into his chest. Listening to his heart beat.  
It was clear to Baxter that Alastor was still shaken up. He had to do something. His partner needed something that would make his fear go away. Or at the very least, distract him from it. He thought back to the events of this morning and remembered how happy Alastor was seeing him react to everything he had done for him. Of course. The other bag was still stuffed with purchases, it was a solution in plain sight.  
“What else is in that bag you brought back?” He casually asked his lover.  
“Nothing important.” Alastor said.   
“Oh, come on now.” Baxter insisted, “Everything you got for me today, you got to make my day as comfortable and pleasant as possible. That is important to me, Alastor. It shows me just how much you care.”  
All Baxter got from Alastor in response was painful silence.  
“Look. I really hope you don’t feel guilty for being out and getting me all these lovely things while a nasty symptom of my infection just so happened to pop up. I was fine.”  
“You must have been frightened.” Alastor lamented, “And thanks to me, you were all alone, trapped and in the dark.”   
“You didn’t know what was happening!” Baxter consoled, “And when it was happening, I knew you were just a phone call away. All I had to do was give you a call and you’d be there. But I chose not to because I wanted to spare you from stress. I thought that If I could keep you from knowing about the blood until Molly got here and could confirm that I was going to be alright, maybe you wouldn’t worry so. But it all went wrong and I just ended up making things worse, didn’t I?”  
Alastor gripped Baxter by the shoulders and pushed him out of his embrace so that he could face him. He opened his mouth and strangled sounds of protest came out but no actual words formed. Baxter couldn’t possibly guess every word he was trying to say but clearly, he strongly disagreed with something Baxter had said.  
“You don’t think I should be blaming myself, do you?” he guessed with confidence.  
“No!” Alastor finally managed to blurt out.  
“I don’t think this is a situation where either of us can be blamed.” Baxter addressed, “But all the same, I’ll try to be more honest with you from now on. If anything like this happens again, I’ll let you know. I promise.”  
Baxter was ecstatic when he saw a small smile spread across Alastor’s face. At last he was getting somewhere with him.  
“Alright.” he said giving Baxter a small kiss, “Wait here a moment.”  
He went over to the remaining shopping bag and retrieved its contents.  
“I’m afraid this one isn’t as exciting as the other one.” He said sheepishly, “It’s mostly just tea. I got you the ones I know you like and some I thought you might.”  
Baxter hadn’t expected Alastor to be subtle here. Obviously not, subtlety was something Alastor just did not do. But he still managed to surprise Baxter when he saw him come back towards him with his arms loaded with god only knew how many different types of tea.  
“Were there any you didn’t buy?” He laughed out of shock.  
“Not really.” Alastor admitted with another small smile.  
It was clear that Alastor’s little shopping trip had been made entirely with Baxter in mind. But Baxter suspected without an ounce of judgement his partner thought of himself just a little bit when he bought all this. He couldn’t help but grin like an idiot at the thought of Alastor’s excitement upon discovering so many new varieties of tea to try. He would loved to have seen that for himself. Baxter may have liked tea quite a bit but Alastor adored it.   
Baxter spotted the ones he liked, classic, green and chamomile and again, he was flattered Alastor had remembered his favourites. But what really caught his eye were the ones he had bought for him to try. Jasmine, mint green, peppermint, green tea with pomegranate, gingerbread and even Bakewell tart. How on earth Alastor had managed to find a box of Bakewell tart flavoured tea, Baxter didn’t know.  
“These all look fantastic.” he gave his partner some much needed praise, “I can’t drink too many hot drinks when I’ve got this infection but even so, I’m looking forward to trying all these. Thank you, darling.”  
“I’ll make you a cup now, if you want.” Alastor offered.  
“Thank you, Alastor. That would be lovely.” Baxter gratefully accepted, “Now then. Which one to try first? I feel like I should have the normal one with honey and lemon to help my throat but I’m curious to try the flavoured ones. Especially the;”  
“Bakewell tart?” Alastor guessed.  
“The Bakewell tart.” Baxter nodded.  
“I got you some actual Bakewell tarts too.” Alastor announced retrieving two boxes of them from the bag, “And as a very special treat because you’re sick, don’t get used to it, I got you this.”  
Baxter was then stunned when Alastor placed a pot of caramel coffee in his hand. It was a small pot, and instant but nevertheless;  
“You got me coffee?” he marvelled, “Real coffee?”  
He inspected the label and sure enough, it wasn’t decaf.   
“But you can’t stand me drinking coffee.” he said flabbergasted.  
“I’m advised that one cup a day can’t harm you.” Alastor said, “But just because I bought you some, don’t think I’m going to let you go back to getting through four entire pots a day.”  
“Never again, love.” he promised and meant every word.  
“I hope so.” Alastor said, “How is your throat? Is it really hurting?”  
“It is getting a bit difficult to swallow.” Baxter admitted, popping a cherry Soother into his mouth.  
Alastor nodded in acknowledgement. “How about ordinary tea with honey and lemon for you, chamomile for me and we’ll share a cup of Bakewell. Just to try it?” he suggested.  
“Sounds like a good idea to me.” Baxter agreed.  
Alastor had the teas made in the time it takes to boil a kettle and slice up a lemon. With a scalpel, due to the lack of knives in the room.  
While he did this, Baxter thought about opening one of the boxes of Bakewell tarts. But it just seemed odd to have them with the same thing in the form of flavoured tea. So, he opted to dig out some fruit and chocolate out of the first bag instead. Choosing the strawberries and the Turkish delight filled bar of Cadbury’s chocolate, knowing how much Alastor loved the stuff.  
Alastor used the same tray he’d carried breakfast on to serve the teas and with the fruit and chocolate, it all looked wonderful. It should have been a happy moment for them both, when they were sitting together with tea and treats. But Alastor’s heart just wasn’t in it the way it was during breakfast or when he gave Baxter the first bag of things he had bought just for him. Alastor looked happier than he had a minute or two ago but Baxter could still see that something was on his mind. How he wished he knew what it was.   
“Baxter?” Alastor suddenly spoke.  
“Yes, Alastor?” Baxter immediately responded. Hopeful his wish was about to be granted.  
“I want to apologise for earlier.” he proclaimed, “You had to comfort me back there when I should have been comforting you.”  
“Oh, Alastor.” Baxter put his cup of tea down to give Alastor the hug he needed. “You’ve been comforting me all morning and how you reacted was perfectly understandable. Listen. I think I know why we both got so frightened. When you first saw me cough up blood, what was the first thing that came into your mind?”  
“TB.” Alastor answered, “That’s what I thought of right away.”  
“Yes, precisely!” Baxter said, “I didn’t admit it to myself at first but when I started coughing up blood, tuberculosis was on the back of my mind as well. Even though I knew I didn’t have it. I think that was because coughing up blood is a symptom associated with far worse illnesses than what I’ve got. That would have certainly been the case in your time and especially in mine. So, no wonder we immediately assumed the worst. It must be the reason why I jumped to conclusions. Despite having the medical knowledge to know better. And why, when you saw me coughing up blood, you;”  
“Panicked.” Alastor finished for him.  
Baxter nodded. “You reacted exactly the way I expected. And I expected you to react that way because I know how protective you are over me and;”  
He averted eye contact with Alastor but blushed and smiled when he said,  
“Because I know how much you love me.”   
Alastor’s cheeks turned redder than the strawberries. Then he finally smiled a genuinely warm and happy smile before tilting Baxter’s chin up for a kiss.   
“That’s right.” Baxter beamed. Holding Alastor’s face in his hands and smoothing over the adorable dimples his smile created, “No more frowning now. It doesn’t suit you. Let’s start enjoying the day again. Starting with this unusual tea.”  
He picked up the Bakewell tart tea and sampled it. Unfortunately, this was an action his taste buds would come to detest him for.  
Baxter theorised that this tea existed for the same reason Alastor bought it. People like tea and they like Bakewell tarts, so why not put the two together? That sounds like a great idea. It was a good idea in theory but unfortunately, in practice Bakewell tart flavouring turned out to be the same as banana flavouring. In the sense that everything it touched instantly turned terrible. But course, Baxter was going to find a kinder way to word that to his partner.   
“This is… um…. well.” he stammered, trying to find the right words to describe the taste. But Alastor took the tea from him and sampled it himself, saving him the bother.  
“Disgusting.” Alastor spoke for him, “Way too sweet. Maybe, I shouldn’t have put sugar in it.”  
“I don’t think leaving it out would have made much difference” Baxter said honestly, “Such a shame. If done right, it could really work and Alastor,”  
“I know. I know.” Alastor read him like an open book, “You appreciate that I got it anyway.” He looked away from Baxter for a moment before giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.  
Now Alastor’s demeanour as was perky and cheerful as it should be. But Baxter detected an aura of mischief around him as well.   
He caught him stealing glances towards the bag all the tea was once in. Come to think of it, why did Alastor keep going back to it to retrieve things? Why hadn’t he simply brought the bag to Baxter, like he had the other one? And if it was empty, why hadn’t he thrown it away? Upon closer inspection, Baxter could see that it wasn’t.   
“Baxter.” Alastor said.  
“Yes.” Baxter answered suspiciously.   
“I did get you one more thing.” His partner confessed.   
Baxter took one look at the gleam in Alastor’s eyes and the smirk across his face and he knew exactly what was up.  
“Oh lord.” Baxter smirked back and made no attempt to hide it, “I know that look. You’ve gotten something ludicrous for me to wear again, haven’t you?”  
No words from Alastor were needed. It was obvious.   
"Let’s see it.” Baxter mock sighed, “I’ve already seen the worst you’re taste gets. No matter what, it can’t possibly be any worse than the Christmas jumper you had made for me last year.”  
“What was wrong with it?” Alastor played dumb, knowing full well with great amusement why Baxter refused to wear it in public.  
"Alastor. It read, "Kiss me under the mistletoe and my lover will have your guts for tinsel.” And if that wasn’t bad enough, when I refused to wear it, you had one made for yourself that had an arrow on it pointing to the left, which you always made sure was pointing to me, and it read, “Kiss him under the mistletoe and I’ll have your guts for tinsel.”  
“I don’t see what’s wrong with that.” Alastor pretended to pout.   
“Because you’re nuts. And if anyone saw me wear it, they’d have thought I was nuts too.”  
"You still kept it.”   
“Well of course I kept it. You had it made for me. I couldn’t throw it away, even if it was of hideous taste”.   
“You like it really.” Alastor cooed, “I know it as well as I know you’ll like this;”  
He brought the bag over to Baxter and pulled out a perfectly folded square of sapphire blue, plush fabric. He unfolded it in a single motion. Showing it off the way a magician would show off his magic and when Baxter saw what it was, he burst into peals of laughter.   
"What is that?” he cackled uncontrollably.  
“Something I thought would suit you very well.” Alastor said, smirk raised in anticipation for the banter they both knew was to come.   
“You thought that would suit me? You must be joking. It looks like an adult sized pair of baby grows.”  
It really did. All that was missing where the feet and a hood had been added instead. Apparently whoever designed the thing didn’t think it looked ridiculous enough.  
“I am not wearing that.” Baxter giggled, “I’d look like a right prat.”  
“You’d look adorable.” Alastor insisted.   
“Like a baby.” Baxter argued playfully.  
“No, like the cutest thing ever to bless this hotel with his presence.” Alastor said, brushing his finger along Baxter’s jawline and up to his cheek, “That you are but when I saw this, I knew it was just the thing to bring out that cuteness. And anyway, I bought it mainly because of its comfort. Feel how soft it is.”  
Alastor rubbed the hood of the garment lightly against Baxter’s cheek and he could immediately see where Alastor was coming from. It had a fluffy texture, making it very, very soft. Yet the material was light, so Baxter wasn’t likely to overheat if he wore it. Although it looked absolutely stupid, Alastor couldn’t have chosen a better thing for a sick person to wear.  
“Alright. You’ve convinced me to try it on. But,” Baxter said, giving Alastor a death glare and jabbing a finger into his chest “if you take a picture of me wearing it and post it onto social media, I. Will. End you.”   
Alastor laughed and said, "Not to worry, darl. You in this little number will be strictly for my eyes only.”  
Baxter rolled his eyes and huffed at Alastor but he couldn’t help smiling.  
A little while later, the couple were cuddled up together in bed. Baxter wearing his gift from Alastor and Alastor wearing nightclothes of his own. Which since he slept here so often, Baxter always kept in his wardrobe for him. For some reason Alastor seemed insistent on keeping Baxter’s hood up. He hadn’t taken a picture of Baxter yet, he seemed to be  
far too busy cuddling him. He was probably waiting for him to fall asleep. That reminded Baxter.  
“You really should get some sleep now, Alastor. You’ve been working all night”.   
“I’ll fall asleep when you fall asleep.”  
“That won’t be long, I can tell you. How am I suddenly this tired?”  
“Because you’re ill and you’ve had no sleep.”  
“Probably.” Baxter yawned, snuggling further into Alastor’s embrace. "You’ve been so good to me today, Alastor. So considerate and thoughtful, even this was a good idea.” he praised his partner, tugging at the fluffy blue mockery. “But as far as the others know, it doesn’t exist, and I have never worn it”.  
Alastor chuckled and leaned further into Baxter’s touch. ‘Today’s been good so far, hasn’t it? And you wanted to go to work.”  
“I must go to work tomorrow.” Baxter said, “I’ve caused enough bother just by staying in today.”  
“You’ll go to work when you’re better and only when you’re better.” Alastor said firmly but with plenty of affection.   
Baxter was in no mood to argue. It just wasn’t the right mood to have an argument in general and besides, he was too tired for it. Funny how last night he couldn’t get to sleep no matter how hard he tried and now he was struggling to stay awake. Maybe it was the comfort of the blankets and the all in one pyjama thing or it was the added feeling of safety that came with being held by someone but he was fighting to keep his eyes open and slowly surrendering. In his hazy state of mind, he settled on the conclusion that it was both. Certainly both. He would try to convince Alastor to let him go to work tomorrow without any fuss. But secretly, he hoped he would stay just as stubborn and uncooperative as ever. He could spend the whole week like this.


End file.
